Assembled crate



Jan. 31, 1933. P. HINGSTON ASSEMBLED CRATE Filed Sept. 8. 1930 Patented Jan. 31, 1933 PATENT OFFICE PHILIB KINGSTON, OF EVERETT, WASHINGTON ASSEMBLED CRATE Application filed September demand is still constantly growing.

It is essential that the crate reach the consumer in as good condition as it left the producer. In order to supply the demand for these crates, thousands of hand-nailers are required to assemble them. Good hand-naiL ers when careful, driving but one nail at a time, are able to accomplish the assembling of these crates at a minimum loss of shock and damage to the crates. It is not always possible, however. to produce the services of careful, reliable, hand-nailers, and for this reason nailing machines are fast coming into use.

But before nailing machines can be used, it is imperative that some improvement be made in the method of construction. Such improvement must be in the nature of some supporting agency that will hold the posts of the end-frames firmly in place against displacement by the impact of the operation of nailing the panels or slats on them in the process of assembly. Nailing machines, as well known, drive all the nails at one blow.

If no eflicient agency be provided for supporting the posts against said impact, there results considerable breaking down of the crates in the nailing operation even when done by hand, as illustrated by Fig. 1. This shows a corner section of an assembled crate, put together in the old way. The crate corner has been given a quarter turn, so as to bring the posts a horizontally disposed with respect to the rail Z), in order that the nailing machine may nail the panel or slat 0 in place. Note the effect of the impact of the nailing machine when nailing the panel or slat c in part on the post a. The latter has been displaced, that is, driven down or inward, as it were, to a considerable degree; and in 0011- 8, 1930. Serial No. 480,466.

sequence, the slat 0 has split, as indicated at (Z; and the split indicated by e is also frequently occasioned at the place where a nail is driven in.

Thus the corners of the crate are wracked, the panels or slats are split, and the strength of the crate has to a very great degree been destroyed in its making. Furthermore it has the appearance of a second-hand crate before it is called upon to perform its first duty.

Another destructive displacement of the posts which results if the ends of the rails are merely nailed to them in the former usual way, is the posts are apt to pivot on the nails which secure them to the rails, and in that way the posts are apt to be wrenched loose from the panels and the crate materially weakened so that it will not stand up in shipment.

The object of my invention is to assure that Y in the assembly of the crate no such weakening wracking will be caused, but the posts of the end-frames will be firmly supported against any displacement in the nailing operation, and also held against pivoting on the1 nails by which they are secured to the ra1 s.

But the providing of some suitable method and means for holding the posts in place during the nailing operation, and preventing them'from pivoting as mentioned, is not the only problem; the method and means employed must not weaken the rails for if they do, the rails will be apt to be split by the impacts which the crate must stand in shipment;

and the means employed must not lessen the holding power of the nails; thus permitting the panels to be readily pulled off, and resulting in the spilling of the contents of the crate.

Temporary supports may also be used, that is to say, a brace in the form of a stick of wood interposed between the posts to support them against said lateral impact during the nailing operation; but such is wasteful in material and time, and adds nothing to the strength of the crate. Speed in manufa-c ture is an economic factor.

I have therefore invented the method of assembly of the crates hereinafter described,

which method I have given a severe test as to practicability and found it efiicient.

I attain the objects of my invention by notching slightly the interior faces of the panels between which the ends of the posts are secured, so as to provide slight, shallow, square shoulders against which side faces of the ends of the posts rest, and whereby the posts are firmly held against any displacement.

The firm assembly of the corners of my crate also increases its strength as a whole, to withstand shocks in transportation, without being wrecked.

Describing now in detail my improved corner assembly and the improved crate so produced, by the aid of the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1, as mentioned, represents the former inefficient method of crate construction and assembly;

Fig. 2 is a perspective detail of a corner of a crate embodying my improved method of construction and assembly;

Fig. 3 is a perspective detail of an end section of one of the rails of my improved crate; and

Fig. I shows my improved crate completely assembled, as it will appear when containing the fruits or vegetables therein shipped.

The end frames of my crate comprise posts f, f, and top and bottom rails g, g, between and to which end frame members the slats h and 7t are nailed.

In my method of assembly, the ends of the top and bottom rails g are slightly notched or recessed as at 2' by cutting back slightly, longitudinally, their interior faces, thereby to provide slight square, transverse shoulders The notching as at 2', must be very slight. The depth of the notches should not exceed a quarter of an inch, for if the notching be too deep the inherent strength of the rails is so weakened that the rails are apt to split during the handling of the crate in shipment. Slight notching of the ends of the rails is all that is required, and in this way the rail ends are not weakened. The posts f are adapted in length to be set in the recesses 71 against said shoulder y. In consequence, the ends of the posts f bear against said slight shallow shoulders j, and are sustained against and capable of withstanding the blows imposed upon them by the operation of nailing the panels or slats h in place, even though a machine, thus a more or less uncontrollable force, as compared with hand nailing, be applied in the nailing operation.

Furthermore the said slight square shoulders of the rails against which side faces of the ends of the posts rest, hold the latter against pivoting on the nails is by which they are secured to and between the ends of the rails; such pivoting otherwise is likely to occur as experience has shown, and such pivoting on the posts tends to wrench the posts loose from the side panels Z.

The slats h of the end assemblies of my crate are tension slats, as apparent from Fig. 4, and these tension slats by their engagement of the sides of the corners of the end assemblies and being anchored to the two rails thereof form end assemblies of great strength capable of resisting the blows and knocks imposed in the construction, handling and transportation of my crate.

I claim:

1. A wooden corner-construction comprising parallel rails having recessed ends forming shoulders, a post having its ends engaged in said recesses against said shoulders, thereby constituting an assembly, a tension slat engaging one side of the corner-construction and anchored to the two rails, and a side member nailed to the end of one rail and the assembled post.

2. A wooden crate comprising corner-constructions consisting of parallel rails having recessed ends forming shoulders, posts having their ends engaged in said recesses against said shoulders, thereby forming the end-assemblies of the crate, tension slats engaging the sides of said corner-constructions, respectively, and anchored to the rails thereof, and side slats nailed to the ends of the rails and the posts.

PHILIP HINGSTON. 

